★★★★★ 4
Interesting read that dispels body language myths
Format: Kindle
I wasn't sure what to expect with this book. I purchased it on a lark after spying it (see what I did there?) in a list Amazon presented me with books I might be interested in reading. I'm always interested in all kinds of aspects of communication from storytelling to persuasion techniques to negotiation tactics, and I'd seen similar titles on the topics of lying and truth evaluation in the past.
I decided to buy this title because of the intelligence agency background of the authors, and they described their method of detecting deception as a relatively simple and straightforward one. They weren't lying (see what I did there?).
The book provides clear, real-world examples of subjects who've been less than truthful when questioned about a variety of topics, and for me, those examples went a long way toward crystallizing the specific points being made about the methodology the authors have developed.
As the book points out, there's no such thing as a lie detector, and I doubt most who read this will ever become as adept at deception detecting as the authors are, but the book does provide interesting insights into human nature and how people can give themselves away when they aren't being truthful. I'd say the book is full of solid concepts to keep in mind as you go about your daily life interacting with other people in all kinds of different situations where truth is critical.
You won't become a human lie detector, and you won't be able to observe someone's body language and determine whether or not someone is being truthful (despite what some TV pundits claim they can do – they can't). Just keep the book's methodology in mind and be mindful when you see some of the behaviors discussed.
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Reviewed in the United States on September 20, 2018
